Pentacon/ Meyer Optik f4 200mm bokeh monster on a K5

Barrie Forbes was asking earlier about whether this lens lets in light through the spring holes of an M42 - K mount adapter because the rear
of the lens doesn't fully cover them. I assured him that there would be no problem and to prove it, put one on my K5 and posted a picture
there and then. The "hole" concerned can be seen just to the right of the red dot on the mount. It is the location of the spring in the adapter.
This particular lens is something of a Cinderella since no one seems keen to buy them even though they are but bigger
versions of the Meyer Optik f4 135 Bokeh Monster that regularly do sell for high prices.

This one illustrates the probability that, if it looks beaten up it's been well used - and that only happens to good lenses. The body is scratched
and dinged with paint missing but the glass is almost mint and the action is buttery like a good Pentax will be.



I can only assume that 135mm trumps 200mm in the convenience stakes. Also, when using one on a 'crop' body, the 200 becomes an
effective 300mm prime that isn't exactly a handy focal length for a walkabout lens! On the other hand, their performance is every bit as
good as their more successful little brothers so, since it was still on the camera, I made use of the foggy, dripping wet morning today to
demonstrate what it can do. All of these are wide open at ISO400.

1. Worst first. Extreme contrast produces fringing but it isn't unpleasant and it goes away by about f8.
More topical, what is a rose doing flowering barely a week away from Christmas? And quite a few trees still have their leaves even now.



2. Reduce the severity of the contrast and most of the fringing disappears, even at f4, while the subject remains quite sharp.



3. Both the 200mm and the 135mm version are called 'bokeh monsters' for a very good reason - their bokeh is lovely.



4. Cotoneaster Horizontalis



5. Wet, golden birch leaves



6. Sprouting shoots for next year's growth



7. Alder twigs and cones with wet spider webs



8. Not a lot of holly berries here this year but the ivy is doing very well



If you see one going for a song then snap it up. You will be pleasantly surprised BUT do check that there is no oil on the iris.
People will say, "it's a preset so the oil is of no concern." But it is. If it dries and the blades stick together then next time you
try to use it one or more of them will pop out of their mount and it isn't an easy disassembly to repair it ! Worn coatings are
nothing to be concerned about provided you are using a decent hood.

All comments are welcome, of course.